Editorials

Data breach and winds of change

Sidharth Bedi Varma | March 27, 2018 19:16
hrs

Mark Zuckerberg’s public statement that was downplayed as a ‘breach of trust’ between Facebook and its users, while claiming that Facebook was unaware about this data theft, is one of the smartest, most diplomatic statements we’re likely to hear all year. Mark must have been trained by Salazar Slytherin himself.

His statement needs real introspection by Facebook users and Mark himself. If there are companies aggregating data without Facebook’s knowledge, this is a serious oversight and a loop in the entire ‘idea of privacy’ that users on the internet and Facebook think they have.

The second most important thing is that privacy in the 21st century is an illusion. Please know that your behaviour is always being monitored; 30 years ago, it was your nosy neighbour, then the telecom companies started keeping tabs and now the internet knows everything there is to know about you.

If the data was misappropriated by Cambridge Analytica to influence voters, this is not just a breach of trust, but rather it is theft of a lot of personal data and companies cannot get away by playing the victim card.

What is India’s position in all this? India is still decades behind when it comes to cyber laws and protection of privacy. While data sharing is important, privacy is paramount. It is time that the government sits and decides on how it will safeguard the privacy of one of the most data hungry countries in the world.